A Deadly Combination
by queenkatniss
Summary: The queen bee of Rosewood High has an addiction, while her best friend keeps away the fact that she has other ways to dispose her lunch. The clique's social butterfly's done something that'll cause her a juvenile slip, a certain Fitz gets down and dirty with the boss for her job, and a redhead has got a crush on someone in her clique. And guess what? I'm telling. -A
1. Introduction: Natalie DiLaurentis

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm super excited to get this story going. It's taken me since the beginning of First off, I just want you guys to keep in mind that the secrets that the girls harbor are not my way of glamorizing it in anyway. All of these secrets are meant to spice up the story. I truly apologize in advance if any of the secrets may or may not affect you in a personal way because I truly understand that they are a little more hardcore and explicit than the ones that are happening in the current PLL show. If you don't feel comfortable with mature themes, such as swearing, very **minimal** sexual content (nothing explicit, I promise), and the use of drugs and alcohol, this story most likely isn't for you. With all that being said, I hope you enjoy the first chapter of this story! The second chapter will be up within the week and it will be the intro for Spencer and Toby's daughter. **Kisses -A**lli

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Dreary clouds casted shadows over the school of Rosewood High, a sign that rain clouds were threatening to burst out like a piñata being hit with a bat. Luckily, the bell had rung minutes ago and on the curb stood a five foot two sophomore with blonde wavy locks that could be identified from a block away just from the shine of it. A few bystanders passed, glancing at her, wondering why she didn't have her groupies surrounding her, latching on to every word she said. She was Natalie DiLaurentis, after all. It was forced to believe that her friends were busy and wandering off elsewhere with their other commitments.

As for Natalie, her phone was out in her hands, frantically tapping on to get a reach of her boyfriend Jace, who was supposed to be there to pick her up. He didn't attend school because 'he didn't feel like it', but she was a little suspicious when Elena Merchan, a girl who was open about her feelings for Jace, didn't attend school either. Trust was one thing, but a coincidence was another.

"Where the hell is he?" she muttered under her breath, ignoring all of the waves and greetings coming her way. Minutes passed and no sign of him in person or on the phone. It seemed to be only Natalie, a couple of staff members for the school board, and Chicken Legged Charlie, a disgusting scrawny sophomore who isolated herself from everyone else and stared at everyone from a far. She was creepy and a total nobody. Deciding it would be better just to walk home, she started her journey, holding back the urge to comment something rude to Chicken Legged Charlie.

For a very known reason, her head was throbbing. She felt like her brain was actually going to pop out of her head before her end of the year exams. Music normally helped, but when she put her earphones in, the music blasted on the highest volume and she yanked them out, a huge grimace replacing her bold features. Sighing, she figured she'd help the pain with some Aspirin.

Another twenty minutes passed before she entered her vast house. "I'm home!" she called out, though there was a possibility she could be home alone. Her mother said she would be out doing errands and her older brother was most likely with his friends. No one answered back, which made her assume she was by herself. As she dropped her backpack to the ground with a thud, the familiar ringtone coming from her back pocket sent her hand shooting to answer it. Rolling her eyes after seeing the name on the front, she answered immediately. "What?" she answered, absolutely infuriated with the male that was supposed to pick her up.

"Where are you?" he questioned through the phone.

"Where were you?" she ignored his first question, heading up the stairs to her bedroom. "I waited hours for you."

"Hours? The hell, you only got out of school fifty minutes ago."

Natalie's jaw slightly dropped, feeling an unusual anger boil up in her. Knowing that she was going to unleash hell through the phone, she pressed end and flung her phone on her bed, rolling her fingers through her hair and clenching her head. She was normally a level headed person, unlike how she was in middle school when she couldn't keep her anger intact. But now, her worst fears were coming alive. The headache wasn't helping matters at all. She rifled through her cabinet, finding the Advil bottle and springing one in her mouth, downing the water from the water bottle placed on her desk to swallow it down. Something in the corner of her left eye caught her and she couldn't help but to look back at it. The plastic container of her iPhone case sat tightly shut and begging to be opened. She snapped into a parallel world, a little hypnotized. Her hand shot towards the case and brought it closer to her, opening it to see what she left in it. Small, sugary looking powder filled to the halfway mark. Her eyes gazed at it, taking a small portion into her palm and staring closely.

It had been exactly one week since she stayed out of contact with the drug that currently resided in her hand, and she was somewhat proud of resisting it. But life had caught up to her. She was more weary, the bags under her eyes could only be controlled with stacks of cakey concealer, and she was easily irritated. Everyone noticed it, but no one wanted to say anything, not even her best friend Sienna, in fear of getting a dose of her wrath.

She could make it go away. A few sniffs and everything would be alright. But was it worth it? She had researched that it could take someone months to kick off the habit for good. Could she do it?

She took a few more minutes to contemplate whether the risk was worth the reward. Without warning, she brought it up to her nose and covered one nostril to sniff within the other, taking an inner pleasure of doing so.

'Was the risk worth the reward?' the blonde haired girl repeated in her mind for the millionth time. She said it was, but she believed the opposite.


	2. Introduction: Sienna Cavanaugh

A/N: This chapter is about Sienna Cavanaugh, Spencer and Toby's daughter. Just let me know if there's a specific daughter from the liars you'd like to see next, and hopefully she'll be the next chapter/intro. Reviews from you wouldn't hurt - in fact, it would motivate me. **Kisses -A**lli

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"So?"

Sienna jumped in her seat, a little concerned as to who had their breath all in the back of her neck. She turned her head, seeing a few girls all dressed in the same outfit but different colored variation of what Natalie had on the same day. The wannabe clique just wouldn't stop with their nagging. Normally, Sienna really didn't mind. A few snickers here and there about why they were all up in their space and they were immediately rid of in her mind. But here they were, taking wannabe to a whole other level with their clothes.

"What?" Sienna asked, a little annoyed. Her head turned back to her food, trying to block them out with the sounds of the uproars from the cafeteria. On the left and the right of her sat Massie and Nia, which were her other good friends, as well as the porcelain skinned redhead, Mary, who sat right across from all of them, giving dirty glances to the girls in front of them. Natalie was nowhere to be found, but it was more than likely she was somewhere with Jace.

"What do you think of our outfits?" they pestered, flashing neutral poses. _'Am I supposed to care?'_ the dark brown haired girl thought in her head, but decided she'd be a little polite. Like her mother always said, "Know when to bite your tongue and when to stand up for yourself." They weren't worth her breath, anyways. She ignored them, picking up a strawberry before eyeing it and deciding that the upcoming seeds that would be stuck in her teeth wasn't worth it. Settling for a grape, she heard the consistent calling of her name.

"Sienna, Sienna!"

They only asked her because she was the closest with Natalie, but what did they expect? For her to jump for joy and praise them for not only being able to not make a selection for their own selves, but prove that society's work all these years wasn't improving at all?

"Okay, listen," Mary spoke up, rolling her eyes. "If she doesn't want to answer you, she doesn't have to. Leave. Like, _now_."

The threesome eyed all four girls before scattering off, defeated without their answer.

"Annoying, right?" Nia said, flipping her chest length hair behind her shoulder melodramatically.

"I guess," Sienna replied, downing the last of her food and ignoring the glances coming from her members. Yeah, she had just eaten two hamburgers. So what? It wasn't going to stay down anyways.

"God, Si, slow down with the food," Nia laughed. "You'll end up going from thick to muffintop."

Massie's mouth was slightly agape as Sienna quickly grabbed her school items and stood up to leave, her wedges clacking on the floors. She had enough with Nia and her smart remarks. Being bitchy to other people was one thing. Being rude to the people that are supposed to be friends was another.

"I swear to God, that bitch was lucky I didn't have my fist down her throat," she mumbled under her breath, taking a left and busting into the girls' bathroom. Luckily, no one was around except for the one girl that had exited the second Sienna had entered. She entered the farthest stall and locked herself in it, tumbling down to her knees onto the toilet. She couldn't help it when tears swarmed her eyes. "No, no," she muttered, grabbing the toilet paper right beside her and dotting her eyes. Wearing waterproof mascara was one thing, but when it ran down her eyes, it would take her forever to have to scrub off without her makeup kit.

She threw the piece that was covered with black tracks into the toilet, sniffling. Preparing herself for what she was going to do next, she started spitting into the toilet, a salty feeling growing on her. Next thing she knew, two of her fingers were down her throat, tapping at her gag reflex and getting rid of everything she had for lunch. The lunch that was going to get her a 'muffin top' according to the evil witch.

After she was finished, she grabbed the toilet paper and wiped her mouth, her hands trembling. She didn't have to do this, but what was her other choice? She didn't inherit her mother's small body size. She had voluptuous curves that took attention away from her meaty legs, but her legs were getting bigger and bigger, and it was time for her to change it. She had been bulimic once, but once her mother found out, she had sent her to a rehab facilitation, claiming that 'it helped her when she had problems as a teenager' and in fear of being known as an attention seeker, she told her friends that she was going on an indefinite summer trip to the Caribbeans. She couldn't do it again, she hated it. Starting up the habit once more wasn't something she was proud of, but it was something she had to do to maintain or drop her weight.

The girls in her clique were all beautiful because they all had one thing that made them pretty. Natalie with her long thick locks and her beautiful looks, Nia with her perfect complexion and designer clothes, Massie with her mysterious facade and her social advantages, and Mary with her persuasive charm and spontaneous hair.

So, where was Sienna in the mix? What was so good about getting good grades? What was so good about being the one to make people laugh? What was so good about being everyone's best friend?

The answer was simple.

**Nothing**.

There was was nothing that made her special, and she hated it. She almost hated herself for it. She couldn't even tell her best friend about why she went to the bathroom so much, forcing her to believe that she was drinking lots of fluids and carrying around her water bottle everywhere to show emphasis.

The school bell alarmed her, snapping her out of her thoughts. Frantically standing up and flushing her mess, she zoomed out of the stall and to the sink to rinse out her mouth. The second she finished, the door swung open and in came some students. She slid the last gum chew she had into her mouth and saw the familiar blonde hair which had immensely separated her from the rest of the crowd. "Nat!" she called out, letting her troubles slip loose into another dimension.


	3. Introduction: Massie Rivers

A strangely dead silence surrounded the dirty blonde haired girl and her group of friends, with the exception of the loud engine coming from both motorcycles being driven in the dark street. Massie hadn't told anyone what she was going off to do, not even her clique members, who would do nothing but criticize her.

She was currently with some other girls from school, the ones in her gym class that offered her to hang out with them. Hadn't they mentioned she was always with her so called 'posse' she wouldn't have gone, but she wanted to make a point that she was open-minded and wasn't a follower.

Now, here she was, stuck in a situation she didn't want to be in. They mentioned something she didn't understand, or maybe she didn't want to understand. The look on her face must have gave something away, or else they wouldn't have snickered at her and told her to hang back if she was too scared. What else could she do? Be the scared little girl that didn't want to face danger in the face and be the talk of town? Or would she step out of her comfort zone to prove a point that she didn't even want to make?

They were officially out of Rosewood, according to the sign with the population stamped across. She adjusted herself on the motorcycle she was on, her arms wrapped around the male's waist in front of her so she wouldn't fall. It was safe to say that no matter how cute the shade of pink the helmet was, it was the worst headwear she had to wear. _Ever_.

Heading into a misty forest, Massie's eyes glanced up into the skies. A few stars shined and created what little light they had in the dark pitched night. How could they drive so fast and not worry about collisions? Her face was being attacked by the upcoming speeds of the wind.

"You okay?" she heard Alex Gheesling question, the guy she had her arms wrapped around. It was hard to make out what he said, but it clicked.

"Yeah!" she shouted over the loud engine.

The first lights she could see were up ahead, a Stop-and-Shop gas station. Watching Alex and the two other girls on the motorcycle beside them, Dove and Serena, exchanging glances, Massie could tell that their destination was closer than she was anticipating. Swerving the motorcycles on the side of the road, they simultaneously climbed off. Dove snatched the bag that hung from the back of their vehicle and opened it, popping out four black masks and tossing them to each person. Massie slipped hers over her face, finding the eyeholes to look through in. They were harder to breathe in than they looked like, especially since the air was a sweltering fifty degrees and she had on stacks of layers.

"Want one?"

Her head jerked up, seeing the gun in Serena's hand. Her eyes popped out a little. "What the hell? Why do you have a gun?"

"How else are we going to do this?" Serena replied back. Massie heard her say something under her breath, but it was too indistinct to latch onto. Second doubts were coming into her head as the three others continued preparing for a dangerous task. She could go home right now. She could tell them she wanted to go home and forget that they even brought her along and risk social embarrassment. It was too late to say anything, though. Even if she wanted to leave, she had no way to get home. She didn't know her way outside of Rosewood because the only times she left her hometown was to head onto an airplane.

"Take this one," Alex told her with his deep voice, handing her a smaller gun. No matter what size the gun was, it still frightened her a little. "Keep your finger on the index point, not on the trigger." He pointed to an area very close to the trigger, which had a small sized indentation. "We're not actually going to shoot anyone unless someone comes at you with a gun." She nodded, trying to pick up everything he said. He went over a few more rules while the girls started chatting and kept a turtle-like pace towards the gas station.

"Let's go," he waved after instructing everything she needed to know. They made their way towards the station and busted through, her heart racing every single step of the way.

"Everybody get down!" Alex shouted at the top of his lungs. Massie saw around seven or eight people roaming around, in which they collapsed to the ground, including an older looking lady. Her emotions got the best out of her, empathizing with the senior citizen. She looked away from her so her guilt wouldn't cause her to do something stupid. Serena was going on a rampage, threatening everyone down to shut up and not make a sound in a falsetto voice and Dove found a hard material and used it to break the cameras while Alex forced the cashier from behind the counter to stash all of the money in the cash register in bags. All Massie could do was watch the commotion ahead of her, gun pointed at no one in particular. Before she knew it, the other three raced towards the door behind her. Alex grabbed her wrist and pulled her along, and it was a good thing he did because she didn't know how long it would take for her to snap out of a paralyzed shock.

"Watch out for cops," Serena warned. They began sprinting as fast as they could, their legs not stopping until a mile later, where their motorcycles resided.

"Wait!" Dove stopped them. "Don't forget about the clothes." Her hands zoomed to the zipper of the black hoodie and zipped it down, along with her pants and shoes. The others copied her as well. Apparently, Massie didn't get the memo because while Dove and Serena had on shorts and a light shirt underneath while Alex had only shorts, Massie was stuck with a tanktop and her lacy underwear.

"Nice ass," Alex complimented, staring at where he wasn't supposed to be. Massie's fingers snapped in front of his eyes angrily, very uncomfortable with his trailing eyes. Out of nowhere, the two girls were already running towards the woods with everyones' clothes. It was the perfect time for all the questions swarming in her head to be answered.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. Why aren't any of the police coming?" she asked right away, trying to keep a nonchalant tone but ending up sounding a little shaky. She knew he noticed it, and with the snicker, he answered:

"The gas station is all the way in Brookshaven. If the police are coming, they're going to come from the other side." He pointed towards the place they had robbed and then pointed the other way. "The Rosewood police wouldn't come."

She rolled her fingers through her hair with one hand, placing her hip on the other and keeping her balance on one foot. "Where are the girls going with our clothes?"

He shrugged. "Getting rid of it, I guess. They're gonna burn it or let the animals eat it or somethin'. Our clothes are on that surveillance tape and they don't need to pair it up with ours or get any evidence from us."

Just as the second question was getting wrapped up, the two ladies busted out and ran back to them. Moments later, they were on their vehicles to head back to the little town. Somehow, Serena counting the money from in the bag while on the back... which shocked the amateur. She could barely keep her balance and she was literally clinging onto Alex, and somehow Serena looked like she was on a random chair, counting stacks like it was nothing.

"Four grand!" she shouted. Hollers and woos rang into the night sky.


	4. Introduction: Nia Fitz

_A/N: Hey, lovelies, I'm sorry I haven't updated in literally forever. End of the year exams have caught up to me and I've been doing everything I can to keep my grades up, but I'm going to update as much as I can from now on and you'll definitely have me through out the summer time. I'm also starting a new story (a bad habit I have is having story ideas and starting them before completing an older story) and I'm not too sure when it's coming out, but I'm hoping I'll post a little something as soon as possible. This next chapter is about Nia, Aria and Ezra's daughter._

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Nia Fitz peered at the time on the computer in front of her. 7:20, it told. She leaned her head back in exasperation. Unlike most days, she couldn't focus on her drawings. Laid in scatters on the table she sat at were sketches of clothing, accessories, handbags, anything that could contribute into the winter catalog that would be released in a few months for Gucci. She had only been working as an intern for a few months, but snagged the last open role as a designer after Betty Pollox, a woman in her late sixties, decided to leave for an unexpected retirement. People called her kooky, despite the remarkable ideas she accumulated in the past. She practically invented handbags, something Nia was a huge fan of. The teenager remembered the day the Gucci handbag line came out a few years ago. She also remembered ordering the same bag in five different colors. A strange talk with her father occured soon after as he eyed what looked to be the same handbags in the box that costed over three thousand dollars. Was it her fault her father didn't understand the importance of the new handbag line? She was never allowed to online shop without consent ever again.

Designing was hard work. Nia believed all you had to do was sketch something with a pencil and present it, but it was much more than that. She had to take art classes to perfect her work, she had to be 110% she knew it didn't derive from, and she couldn't mess up.

At least, that was what the other workers based their work on.

Nia didn't have to do all that. Not because she was already an above average drawer and not because she was unique being herself. She harbored a special fact that got her to where she is now and how she not only got accepted to work at the offices of one of the best fashion companies ever, but she was on her way to being one of their runway models when she turned eighteen and got out of Rosewood. She wanted to live a high and glamorous life, not a dull small town life.

How long had she zoned out for? It was already 7:40. How?

"I need to go," she muttered under her breath with a swift head shake. She proved to herself that she wasn't going to get any productive work done if she wasn't going to focus, and if she had one more latte with a swig of extra caffeine, her head would explode into solid versions of coffee.

After she shut off her computer and organized her papers into a neat pile, she snatched her shoulder strapped bag and shut the light before stepping out of her office. Before she could take another step, something - _someone_, actually, smashed right into her. She let out a yelp of pain, her hand shooting up to the side of her head, where she was impacted. A high voice spitted out an apology, and just by the voice, Nia didn't even have to look up to know who it was and exactly how fake the apology was.

"Are you okay, Nya?" the blonde haired woman in front of her questioned. Nia looked up and gave her one of her infamous cold stares. Patricia Malone, or as Nia liked to call her 'Patricia the Pig,' was a fashion designer as well, except she had less advantages than Nia had. According to Amy, one of the interns she worked with a few months ago, Patricia wanted the current designer spot Nia has for half a decade. She wanted the office, she wanted to be in all the same meetings, but she couldn't, because she wasn't part of the Star Six - six designers, including the boss, that made all of the final decisions before shipping everything away to New York, where the big Gucci company resided. Though Patricia attempted to create hell for the younger female, Nia dealt with jealousy all the time at Rosewood High, and the pig was no difference.

"Nia," she corrected. "Don't call me Nya. It's Nia."

"No, I don't think that's right," Patricia trailed off, following her on her journey to the elevator. "I'm pretty sure it's Nya."

_Note to self,_ Nia thought, _get Sienna to photoshop Patricia's head on a pig and hand her hundreds of copies._

She snapped her entire body back as the older lady made an unintelligent remark, pulled out the piece of gum from her mouth, and smashed it. Right on top of the blonde's hair. An utter of shock mixed with horror escaped her mouth, followed by a muffled scream. Nia couldn't help but to laugh at the top of her lungs as her rival scurried off to find the bathroom, frantically trying to wrestle it out of her dead strings of hair. That was the first time she had ever done that after seeing Natalie do the same thing to a girl that slipped her boyfriend Jace a number. She wouldn't let Natalie see her do that, in fear that she would get mad over her 'stealing the idea' but doing it in the privacy of her workplace was alright.

Turning around, she realized that it actually wasn't in the privacy of her workplace at all. Almost everyone in the first columns of the main area were staring at her - some with shock, some with smirks on their faces, and some in fear. It was attention, and the Rosewood girl enjoyed attention more than she could admit.

"Nia, can I see you in my office?"

Oh, no. The familiar voice of her boss caused shivers to roll down her spine. She looked behind her, the fact that his office was merely a foot away from the gum scene only clouded her thoughts that moment. John Leroy, the manager, stood right at the door, his blue-grey eyes looking as still as an untouched pond. He was tall, 6'0 at the most, with a scruffy thin beard and slick backed hair. If there weren't any grey streaks and wrinkles clouding his face, he would've looked like he was in his thirties. But for forty-six, he was still looking pretty good.

"Sure," she replied, her flats scraping against the floor to her destination. She could say his office was beyond familiar. It was bigger than hers, but less decorated. While hers reeked with pink and fluorescent lights, his was merely grey and plastered with awards and designs.

Hearing the click of a locked door, it was obvious to her what was going to happen within the hour. She was so exhausted, though. Couldn't it happen later instead?

She felt his warm hands caress her shoulders, massaging gently. Her head tilted back ever so slightly, a small smirk playing against her face. She needed that.

"I don't like what you did to her out there," John spoke up after a few minutes. Her eyes shot open. She was so out of it, if he didn't say anything for another five minutes, she most likely would've taken a nap.

"Oops." She suppressed a grin.

"I could fire you, you know."

She rolled her eyes, making sure he could see while he continued gripping her shoulders. "Don't be an idiot. You and I both know you wouldn't fire me."

She didn't even have to look at him to know he was smiling. They both knew she was right, for two essential reasons. One because she kept this office alive. A member from the Star Six had told her that before Nia came along, there was no one that stirred up a commotion. The place was dead and quiet. With her skits and confrontations, the office chattered all about her and made the place a little more lively. And two... because she was the only one that gave John what he wanted. It's how she got the designer job with the separate office.

As soon as the thought of sitting down came up, she felt his breath against her ear. Suddenly, his hands slithered away from Nia's shoulders, to her arms, and to her hips, getting a firm grip. Unfortunately, she wasn't as curvy as Mary or Sienna was, but her thin body seemed enough for John.

"And why's the reason I won't fire you, hm?" he asked her, more rhetorically than literally. She spun around, a seductive look smeared across her face, but she was anything but feeling the need to seduce. She was especially disgusted that he found a pleasure in taking advantage of her, but if she didn't go along with it, she'd have to say bye bye to her job, as well as all the free clothes she gets from Gucci, and that was a gigantic _no_. It was either that or being stuck with old stealing habits.

"Because I do this," she said, kissing his left cheek. "And this." she did the same with his right cheek. "And this." Her lips smashed against his, wrapping her arms around his as he pulled her up onto his desk. She got through the last twenty minutes keeping an eye on the gold necklace sitting perfectly on his desk. As if he had set it out recently for someone as a reward.

Someone like her.


	5. Introduction: Mary Fields

"So? How do I look?" Mary spoke over the loud rock music that blasted within the giant room. She fluffed her hair with her hands, gazing over at Natalie. Mary had gone out of her way to wake up an hour earlier, just to walk over to Natalie's house. They had planned it the night before because Mary wanted to dye her hair, but she couldn't do it without her friend's permission - especially since Natalie said she hated her recent blue streaks and forced her to dye it back to brown. Now, they had chosen a nice, velvet red tone for late fall.

The blonde standing next to her took her time to apply her lipstick, not even looking Mary's way at her announcement. Once she popped the lid back on the nude color, she turned her head.

"Hm..." Natalie purred as her hands wandered through the other teenager's hair. Mary wasn't sure what she was looking for. Long moments passed when the check-up was starting to feel like an examination.

After a final scruff of her hair, a small smile lit up on Natalie's face. "Nice."

The official redhead grinned at her approval, a sigh escaping her bare lips. It was difficult to find any acceptance from such a high maintenance person such as the young DiLaurentis. She learned that when it was given out, it was for a good reason.

Mary peered into the mirror once again, picking up her comb to entangle any knots that might have formed when rinsing out the smelly dye. Her hair was somewhat damp, but not to the point where she would have to rule out flat ironing it.

"Are you really going to fry out your hair again?" Natalie cringed, eyeing the straightener Mary had just picked up. "Seriously, do you want to end up like Nia, having to burn your hair until it turns into a horse mane?"

Mary smirked, shrugging afterwards. "Not everyone has the ingredients to perfect hair like you do."

As if to acknowledge the comment, she flipped her beautiful silky locks behind her but continued to file down her nails. "Not my fault the rest of you didn't inherit my mother's gene."

"As if we had a choice," Mary snickered. A smile tugged on the corners of her friend's lips. She put down her nail filer and met her green-hazel eyes with Mary's sea-grey eyes, electrifying her. That always happened to Mary whenever their eyes would meet. Goosebumps would form on her arms and a lump would form in her throat. She was pretty good at hiding what she was feeling, but was it going to be enough down the road?

Her feelings were pretty confusing, to say the absolute least. How she was around Natalie alone wasn't how she was around Massie alone or Nia alone or Sienna alone. She felt warmer, but a little nervous, like her insides were going to turn inside out.

Then there were those thoughts she dared let inside her mind. The ones that would cost a one way flight out of her group, destination of freaks and loners. Thoughts of holding hands with Natalie, of cuddling with her while watching a movie... pressing her lips against hers. Anytime she allowed thoughts such as those invade her, she pushed them out right away, the guilt pressuring her to do so. Everyone seemed okay with Mary's mothers for the most part, if not welcoming, so it wasn't that she was scared of being pushed around if she ever let such wicked ideas roam around her mind. She felt as if Natalie would completely block her out, like she would feel fearful or uncomfortable being around her.

As Natalie's hand met with Mary's to steal away the straightener, she couldn't help herself as her breath was caught in her throat. She coughed lightly, trying to avert her sudden action.

"If you're going to fry your hair," Natalie started, roaming her hands through the other girl's hands, "you might as well fry it right."

Mary couldn't help but to chuckle at her small joke. She watched through the mirror as her fingers traveled through the left side of her hair before weaving the thin, lavender-colored straightener through her hair, forming loose curls in the front, incorporating a few strands to leave a wavy yet straight effect. Mary stared in awe at the longer haired teenager and her ability with the heat product, reminding herself to ask how she managed to do such a technique.

After finishing up the back and the right side, Mary grinned. She looked like she had just hit the salon.

A touch of hairspray and a glob of hair shiner later, they were ready to go to school. Mary grabbed her phone, turned off her music, and slipped it into her pocket before snatching up her black and purple backpack off the floor.

"I'm leaving, mom!" Natalie called out as soon as they exited her room.

"Alright, Natalie!" Mary heard her friend's mother, Alison, call out from her workroom. She was always so busy with her work as a beautician, especially since she had so many customers. Whenever she wasn't working in Pennsylvania at her personal salon, she was at home, experimenting with head mannequins or on Mary's un-biological mother, Emily.

Something had struck Mary odd whenever their parents were together. It was as if... Alison and Emily had unspoken tension, and it was worse whenever Natalie called it out and Alison gave her daughter stares of death. Mary made sure not to question anything, but one thing was for sure: something was going on between the two.

As she slipped on her Jordan sneakers, she pieced a few things together. Was the way Alison and Emily interacted the same way Mary wanted to interact with Natalie? She was scared to even admit it, because if she did, she'd feel... wrong for feeling like that.

_No_, she thought to herself as the big, green eyed blonde opened the door for the two of them to leave. _I won't let myself feel that way._

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A/N: Hey, guys! Ahhh, sorry I've practically abandoned this story without even finishing up the intros. This will be the last introduction, but whether I'm going to just leave this story or continue is up to you. I really don't know if any of you are interested in this anymore, and I feel like I'll have no motivation to go on if no one'll be reading, so just let me know if you'd really want me to continue! :) xo


	6. Chapter 1

_"The heights of popularity and patriotism are still the beaten road to power and tyranny." -David Hume_

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In the quiet side of the parking lot, Natalie stood with her back to the world, finding relief in the powdery drug that remained in her palm. Each sniff she consumed made her feel sensational yet guilty. Fortunately, the sensation beat the remorse just enough to satisfy her addiction. She could only think, what would happen if such a thing was exposed? The reputation she held at Rosewood High was one that was easy to peel down until it was worthlessly broken. Thanks to her quick remarks and defensive group of friends, she never had to reach an extent to protect herself from secrets. The ones that knew things were her clique members and irrelevant nosy gossips who she pays in brief social status by snapping a selfie with or inviting to one party. But _one_ only. She wouldn't be caught dead by their side anyways.

The bombshell cursed under her breath as the wind picked up and the substance breezed against her chest, leaving her ironed baby pink cashmere sweater to suffer with white dust on in. God, sometimes she really hated the seasons. If it weren't for the beauty of the fallen leaves that turned colors and how she'd be able to wear more toned colors because it matched the setting, she'd hate fall.

She finished her load, reveling in whatever she had left, before clapping her hands together to get the remains off. She felt amazing, like she was off the ground and there was no way she'd ever feel sad again. But if she was in the correct state of mind, she'd know that the feeling would disappear sooner or later and she'd be back to square one.

She adjusted her backpack over her shoulder and staggered across the parking lot of the high school, almost waving at a couple of no life losers but stopping her hand midway and flicking them off instead. She didn't know where that came from and she didn't ask herself either. It was easier to blame it on the high she was on.

She buckled on her heel as she reached the stairs, but luckily, Massie stood by on her cell phone and spotted her. She ran up to her friend in excitement, but by the time she turned up, she noticed something abnormal. Her eyes were halfway opened, like she had absolutely no shuteye of sleep. Her long locks covered most of her face. It was a mystery how she managed to walk with so much hair in her eyes.

"You okay, Nat?" Massie asked slowly, clutching her arm and helping her up the stairs.

"Yeah," Natalie replied, but soon after, began giggling like crazy. Normally, Massie liked it when her superior friend laughed at her jokes, but asking if she was well wasn't that funny. Her suspicions kicked in once again, but she kept her mouth closed. Having an older sister and bunches of older male cousins that she went to visit once a month, she knew when someone was doped.

"Okay, let's get you in here," Massie pushed the girls' bathroom door opened and dragged her obnoxiously laughing friend inside. As other girls stared and wondered why the queen bee was so weird, the other clique member barked for them to leave, in which they all exited gradually. Massie had never made a command to a group of girls, which normally would have made her feel good, but she was more concerned for her friend's wellbeing.

"Hey, hey!" Massie tapped on Natalie cheek to get her into focus. "Why'd you do this at school, where people can see you?"

In response, the girl shrugged, her laughing stopped abruptly. Out of nowhere, a girl with burgundy hair and square shaped glasses popped out of the stall after flushing, guiding her way to the sink. Massie held back a laugh at how she looked so lonesome. She deserved it.

Hope Anderson, or 'Ho Anderson' as Natalie and her friends liked to call her, was one of the snarliest people at Rosewood High, if not the town itself. She kept a quiet facade, but under all that pale freckly skin and Walmart-bought clothes, she was eccentric. Sienna had the most troubles with her since Hope had pushed her around before the clique was formed, which was why the intelligent damsel who wouldn't hurt a fly made Hope's life hell for a few months. It started with minuscule things, such as putting sticky things in her burgundy colored hair like gum or peanut butter so she'd be forced to cut it off or tampering with her homework assignments so she'd be getting straight F's instead of straight A's. Then it turned to more crazy things like getting her ongoing suspensions and getting her in trouble with her parents. When she finally looked like she had enough, Sienna quit her shenanigans and moved onto focusing on her last exams before the summer.

"You can leave too," Massie snapped, "you don't wash your hands regularly, so why do it now?"

Natalie snickered, her tiny giggles turning into a loud brash laugh. Massie was afraid it would be ongoing like it was before, so she covered her hand on top of Natalie's and turned her head so that it wouldn't be noticeable to Hope.

Hope ignored the two girls and presumed washing her hands. Before Massie could snap at her again, the wild flock of text messages and notifications were getting the best out of her, so she let go of Natalie's arm and replied to everything she could, including a blocked number with a message and a set of photos. It read:

_You might be able to keep Natalie's secret now, but can you hold yours together? -A_

She scrunched her eyebrows as she pressed on the gallery of photos that was attached along with it. Her heart pounded when she scanned over them. In every single one of them, it was her and her old friends from a few months ago robbing the small station of money — except her face wasn't covered with the mask. The street lights hit her face perfectly. In fact, she had a pretty glow that would have went noticed, had she not been freaking over about the actual content.

Who on earth could have harbored these? She looked at the initial, '-A' and scanned people in her mind whose name started with an A. Allen, Aria, Ayana... but her ex, her best friend's mother, and her lab partner had no motive to frame her. All three of them were on good terms with her.

"What's wrong?" Natalie asked with absolutely no concern to be found in her voice. Massie looked up from her phone to see that Hope was gone. She let out a sigh, running her fingers through her hair.

"Nothing," Massie lied. If this had gotten out, she didn't know what would happen. Juvi, perhaps. She knew she didn't look good in orange, or behind bars either. She was scared for her life, and there was nothing she could do.

That night, every single girl got a threatening picture along with a discreet message from the mysterious -A. Each girl didn't know what to do or what to think. It was too much to grasp at once, but they all shrugged it off. It wasn't something that was meant to take seriously, right?

Little did they know that it was just the beginning.

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**A/N**: Hey, guys! So, now that I'm finished with the introductions, I have a lot planned for these girls. I know I've been focusing on other stories rather than this one, but I won't be disregarding this _for now_. If I don't have my motivation back by the tenth chapter, there's a chance I'll just drop the story. The chances of frequent updates are pretty slim, so I truly apologize in advance.


End file.
